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Growing Tired Of/Getting Addicted To Instagram?: challenging the way we use social media!

Warning: I bloody love this jumper and you will see it a lot! 

Let's admit it: social media is not always the best thing, eh? We compare ourselves to others, belittle ourselves and sometimes, or at times, rely on the validation it gives us through likes, comments, etc. But social media doesn't have to be 'evil' (or just the opposite of beneficial) because it simply is a tool that we can use to express ourselves in any which way we like. For the topic of this post, I want to explore how it can help us document the ever-quickly-running-away-from-us thing that is life.

My legs,,,

I started Instagram in 2012. It began as an online diary, or at least it became one pretty quickly after the deeply-confusing-starting-period. I used it to record how I was feeling, what I'd been doing, my mental health. It remained as this kind of journal-app for me for a long time. It was cool to look back on my past self, and in hindsight I can see that I was a very creative individual back then (what went wrong??), but maybe I'll look back in the future and think that of my current self. Who knows?

The bottom of my legs...

Anyway, it became a tool to document, so that I could see when things happened and how they unfolded. But it has now become some kind of validation-game. I want people to like and comment, I want them to see me and think certain things. It isn't fun anymore, it's a sort-of-almost addiction and I can't stand it but I can't stop. I think to myself often: 'wouldn't it be nice to quit instagram...?' but shortly after that thought, I post a photo and the cycle starts again. It's a catch-22. Bleh!

The problem isn't instagram, it's how I'm using it. If only we could all see it as a documentation system, an online journal. But that would require openness and transparency, which I'm not sure we're all happy to provide online (not that I blame anyone, sometimes I struggle myself). Instagram used to be a lovely, happy community where likeminded individuals could connect and share ideas.

I don't think it's that anymore. It's an arena for comparison and self-doubt. And in that state, it's helping very few.

MY FACE! (bet you didn't see that coming!)

So, my argument is: use it for you and not for others, use it as you would a journal (minus the super-personal stuff of course!). It's a creative outlet for your future self to enjoy, not for others to aspire to.

Post that 'crappy' art! Post that makeup-less selfie! It's your platform, use it for your own benefit :) 

Right, folks, that was my two-penneth concerning instagram and how I intend/we ought (?) to use it, I hope you enjoyed. Over and out!


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